


With Your Love I’m a Better Man

by bonotje



Category: Formula 1 RPF
Genre: Introspective Max, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-31
Updated: 2018-08-31
Packaged: 2019-07-05 01:23:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,104
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15853374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bonotje/pseuds/bonotje
Summary: ‘Do you drive better now that you’re in love?”The question they’d asked keeps playing on his mind. He stands by the answer he gave them. ‘No, it would be pretty bad if my driving was determined by that.”





	With Your Love I’m a Better Man

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was inspired by a question Max got asked on Peptalk this Monday. I've uploaded the episode on my channel for any non-Dutch fans. I'm actually working on English subtitles right now, but they are taking me longer than I expected. But here's the link to the video anyway: [X](https://youtu.be/M-JCT8uHb8w)
> 
> (Title from Better Man by 5 Seconds of Summer)

_“Do you drive better now that you’re in love?”_

The question they’d asked keeps playing on his mind. He stands by the answer he gave them. ‘No, it would be pretty bad if my driving was determined by that.”

He stands by it because it’s true. He doesn’t drive better or worse when he’s in love or not. It wouldn’t work if his driving ability was determined by his love life. If he drove better when he was in love what would happen if he no longer was?

No his driving abilities weren’t determined by his emotions, no matter how much the press had tried to make it out to be at the beginning of the season. He’d been in love back then and he had been in love the season before, but he doesn’t think he drove better or worse the season before falling in love with Daniel. If his ability was determined by his emotions, whether he was in love or not, then he would have been winning a lot more races.

So no, he doesn’t drive better now that he’s in love. That said, being in love definitely does help him with how he deals with his job when he isn’t in the car. Being in love helps him when his engine breaks down on him once again. When instead of an empty hotel room he’s met with a tight hug and kiss pressed to his temple. When instead of just the cheers from fans and social media messages after a podium there’s actually someone to kiss passionately. Someone to get drunk with as they celebrate, someone to fuck the night away with.

Someone that makes him less selfish. That makes him think twice about things, makes him stop doing stupid stuff without thinking first. Someone who makes him consider the other’s feelings. When he wants to be cursing the world, but doesn’t because Daniel won. When he wants to be cheering loudly and getting smashed after a win, but asks Daniel what he wants first because he crashed out of the race.

Love doesn’t make him a better driver. He still wins when he’s not in love. He still crashes his car sometimes even when he’s in love.

“What are you thinking about?” Daniel asks, rubbing a thumb over the frown between his brows, pulling him back to reality. Back onto the plane that’s about to leave for Italy. They’d pretty much left for the airport as soon as he’d finished the TV show. Daniel meeting him at the airport after what must’ve been one of the shortest hotel visits.

“Just something they asked on the show just now.”

“Hmm, the thing about whether I left because of money or you?”

“No actually. Wait how do you know they asked me that?”

“Heard my name, it wasn’t very difficult to figure it out even with my limited Dutch.”

“You actually watched the show even though you barely know any Dutch?”

“Well I could still stare at your pretty face couldn’t I,” Daniel grins, wiggling his eyebrows in a ridiculous way. “What question were you thinking about then?”

“Something a fan asked. Whether I drive better now that I’m in love.”

“They still think you’re with that girl from the gala?” Daniel asks a frown pulling at his brow.

“Dilara, you can say her name you know. She’s my ex, not some terrible creature that’ll come haunt you if you say her name three times whilst looking in the mirror,” he says with a slightly annoyed laugh. His ex girlfriend was always an awkward topic between him and Daniel.

“I know, I know. I guess I’m just a little jealous of her sometimes. Being able to get all dressed up and be shown off by you, while I get to walk 10 feet behind you on my own.”

“I know, I know it sucks and I don’t like it either. Maybe next year we’ll be able to.”

“Maybe,” Daniel says with a wistful smile. They’d talked about it a lot lately. What Daniel switching teams would mean for their relationship. If maybe they could actually let the world know about them then. Next year, it was something he was both looking forward to and also dreading.  

They knew keeping things a secret next year would be even more difficult than it was right now. With the two of them not supposed to be spending so much time together for work anymore they knew people would get suspicious. That the press would pick up on it immediately if he would visit the Renault garage a little too often. That someone would surely figure out they were still sharing flights home.

So next year would be the year, the year they’d open up. But next year would also mean not seeing Daniel as much. Sure race weekends they could sneak off to see each other, but they wouldn’t be sat in boring meetings together. Instead stuck listening to people drone on about changes to the car without the distraction of a hand on his thigh. Without Daniel pulling silly faces at him behind Christian’s back. And then during the weeks they’d be in different factories, in the same country but still 40 miles apart. Meeting in the middle at the end of a day of simulators and more technical information. Flying home to Monaco together to finally spend some proper time together.

Their schedules wouldn’t change much, still too many airplane flights in the space of too little time, they’d just be spending a lot less of that time together.

“What was your answer?”

“I thought you were watching the show,” Max teases, knowing the Aussie would’ve gotten barely any of the stuff they’d talked about on the show. Apart from when he’d heard his own name of course.

Daniel sighs, rolls his eyes at him and asks once more, “What was your answer?”

“No,” Max says with a shrug. “Told them it’d be pretty bad if it were determined by my love life.”

“Right,” Daniel nods, his face working in a complicated way as he thinks Max’s answer over. He’s sure Daniel would’ve given a different answer. Would’ve told them that no he didn’t drive better because he was in love, but that it made him happier to get in the car each weekend. That it would make him enjoy the wins more, would make the losses hurt less. So actually they’d have very similar answers, Max just didn’t share his so freely.

 

No he doesn’t drive better because he’s in love, but being in love does make him a better person.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading. As always kudos and comments make my little writers heart soar. And you can find me on tumblr at [sleepysuggles](http://www.sleepysuggles.tumblr.com)
> 
> (Also I know Dilara is still his girlfriend, but hey this is fic :P)


End file.
